Chill More When Planning Your Wedding

Isn't it better to enjoy the journey than just look forward to the destination? When planning your wedding, make it an enjoyable experience. It may seem like a lot of work, but isn't the end result worth it?

Take time to relax, laugh, and take it easy. Follow these easy tips to make your wedding experience a great one!

1.It doesn't have to be perfect! Things may go wrong along the planning way or there may be glitches but that can lead you to something better if you let it. Be flexible and take a deep breath then forge ahead and find a solution.

2.Keep a wedding notebook. Keep track of your wedding planning adventures. Someday you will look back and laugh at all the little things that happened along the way. Journal your feelings and experience at the end of each day. Add some photos for a pre wedding scrapbook.

3.Plan ahead so you have plenty of breathing room! Keep a planner at your disposal. No matter if you have 6 months, 2 months, or 3 weeks to plan. Plan your days so that you don't feel rushed in the process of putting together your wedding. You want to enjoy the week before your wedding and planning ahead is key to your success and your sanity! Stay on top of your wedding game plan!

4.Take time for yourself! Don't spend all your time before your wedding in planning, shopping, and worrying about the wedding! Do some things you enjoy! Take time to stop and smell the flowers! Take your mom and grandma to lunch!

5.Use your sense of humor! When tension or stress starts to build, try and find something funny about the situation. This will help take the edge off and you'll feel much better about things.

6.Relax! Find ways to relax! Turn on your favorite tunes and soak in a bubble bath. Whatever helps you unwind and rejuvenate...take time to pamper yourself once in awhile! You're worth it!

7. Pace yourself! Trying to do everything at once is very overwhelming. Plan well and space things out. Learn to delegate if you need to . Enlist the help of family and friends in getting your wedding to do list done!

8.Go With The Flow. If you have to turn down an invitation or two once in awhile, only take on things that you can handle right now. Don't over schedule yourself and learn to say no if you need to. Right now focus on the things that are most important to you in your life at this time.

9. Exercise and stay healthy! Find time to exercise! It is very important to your over all well being! Get plenty of rest and eat healthy! Reward your efforts by splurging once in awhile with a special sweet treat.

10.Enjoy the journey! It's possible you know to enjoy the process of planning your wedding. Hopefully it is a once in a lifetime event for you and you want to capture the essence of this special moment. Life passes so quickly! Enjoy this time so you don't look back with regret that you didn't laugh more and worry less about the whole wedding thing.

A Little Party Inspiration

Found this inspiration for a wedding or party on Holly Beck's Decor 8 blog. A very talented event planner by the name of Amy Atlas put these dessert tables together. Don't the tables make you want to run right out and plan a party?

You can take inspiration for your next party or plan your wedding around colors that you see woven together in photos like this. Check out the story on Decor 8 as they have more pictures and more information on how they put these tables together.

Dessert tables are a great way to treat your guests at your next party. If you are planning a wedding, think about having a dessert table to impress your guests. Choose your main color then add a contrasting color. Carry that over into your choice of desserts be it candy, cookies, cake, popcorn, cotton candy, beverage whatever you choose! Delight your guests and let the fun begin!

Bride Courage

It's not often you see a bride wearing a cast on her wedding day. I came across these awesome photos taken by Jesse Chamberlin of Our Labor of Love Photography Studio and wanted to share them kind of a reminder to us all about what really counts on your wedding day.

Ok how many of us would reschedule or cancel that wedding because of the cosmetic look of the cast, the embarrassment, or the inconvenience? This beautiful bride took a negative thing and turned into a joyful memorable occasion in her life. This takes some bride courage! Apply this to all the downs we face in life. Take the high road and find someway to turn the negative into positive. Work it to your advantage!

Make your life happy and on your wedding day if things don't all turn out as planned take a deep breath, smile, and be flexible. It's all a part of your story and making it memorable! Laugh and "find the perfection"!

Quaint and Romantic Reception on the Farm

If you're looking for a beautiful, cozy, and romantic place for a wedding event, take a close look at Wadley Farms in Lindon, Utah. Surrounded by orchards, gardens, and a backdrop of the gorgeous rocky mountains makes for a breathtaking setting perfect for indoor or outdoor wedding events.

You can go rustic elegance with the Historic Barn at Wadley Farms. They offer a turn of the century setting in the Railroad Hall featuring hardwood floors, wraparound porch, and white bead board walls. Or stay outdoors under a canopy of tall trees and a wisteria covered gazebo in a peaceful beautifully landscaped garden setting. What an excellent choice for your special event that will have guests and family talking for years about their magical visit to Wadley Farms.

Not only do you have a choice of buildings on the farm to host your special wedding event, they offer some charming amenities. An old fashioned black carriage can hold your wedding gifts. It makes a darling display! As guests walk about the place, they will notice rock walls, welcoming flower beds, old world doors, and a rock covered tower, archways, and a three tiered fountain.

To say that it is a great place for wedding photos is an understatement! You can get very creative with the ambiance that the buildings and garden area portray. If you think outside the wedding box, Wadley Farms
can also host luncheons, dinners, anniversary celebrations, business meetings, etc...

Whichever site you choose, be it The Barn, The Railroad Hall, or the pristine Garden, you won't be disappointed. It will be a romantic setting reminiscent of something straight out of a fairytale!

Playing House...for Real!

You know how when you were young you had fun playing house? If you are ready to tie the knot and set up house for real, here are a few tips to consider to make the transition from I to we much smoother!

Here's your list of "to do" before you say "I do":

*Bank accounts?

You will need to decide where you will bank and you will need to order checks and debit cards with both of your names if you plan to join your finances.

*Phone

Will you have a home phone or just use your cell phones? What about getting on the same cell phone plan? This may save you money by combining cell phone use. More and more couples are only using their cells as their main home phone.

*Hook up Utilities

Contact your local city department to make arrangements for water and garbage, and recycling pick up. Then have your gas and electricity hooked up. Decide if you will put it in one name or both on the bill.

*Health and Home Insurance Policies

Are you both covered by your current employers? Do you want to switch plans or health providers? What about life insurance? Good to talk this over before you get married.

Don't forget home owner's or renter's insurance.

These are things to discuss and take care of before you head off on the honeymoon. Then you can enjoy your wedding more knowing that you can return to home sweet home and be ready to "play house" for real!

Create A Cute Wedding Gift Thank You

Couldn't resist sharing this cute thank you for the wedding gift! The couple had a picture taken of them holding giant lollipops. The caption reads, "Thank you for making our wedding so sweet." Their names are on the bottom of the postcard size card.

Their thank you is handwritten on the back. Very important that you hand write a thank you for your wedding gifts! Cute and no envelope needed. You could easily design something like this using your own creative spin! Short and "sweet" and to the point.

~Planning Your Wedding~Part 5

Here we go with Part 5 of your wedding checklist. At this stage of the game, it is beginning to feel like you are really going to get married!

2 Months Ahead

• Decide who you want to help at your wedding, reception, breakfast, or dinner~contact the people that you would like to have help you. First make a list such as guest book, take gifts, serve refreshments, etc...then go ahead and ask them to put it on their calendar.

• Address announcements and invitations~ make it a bit of a party. Invite your in laws such as mom, sisters, and your hubby to be as well as your sisters and mom to help with this daunting task! Offer refreshments, put in a movie, have plenty of pens, stamps and get your addresses then forge ahead!

• Schedule your bridal portraits~you can hire a professional or you can get creative and have someone who is really good with their digital camera take your photo. Just depends on how much you want to spend and how fancy or informal you want your portraits to be. You may want to consider displaying your photos at your wedding reception. You could also set up a table at your reception with several photos framed, do some photos in black and white, and different sizes. You could also scrapbook some in a special wedding day album to display at your reception. (You might also want to give some bridal photos to your videographer to include in the wedding day video.)
  

• Check out your options for insurance~ such as health, auto, life, and renters.
  

~Planning Your Wedding~ Part 4

This is the fourth installment in my "Planning Your Wedding" blog series. I think it makes planning your wedding a little easier that way than just giving a long list of things to do for each month.



That way, I also get to comment and give more helpful tips for making your wedding day unique to you, more affordable, and less stressful!

3 Months Ahead

• Groom's ring~if you haven't already purchased it and picked it out, now would be a good time to do this. Also have any engraving done on the ring if you plan to do that.

• Register for your wedding gifts~ This makes gift giving a little easier for your guests because they know exactly what you need and would like.

• Time to find a place to live~ start looking for a place to live.

• Order your Wedding Cake~Shop around! There are so many great ideas online and then find a cake that you like and take that idea to the cake decorator. Cake decorators also have many ideas available for you if you're not sure the type of cake you want. You can also order frosted cakes with no decor and you could be adventurous and decorate your own. Add some silk or fresh flowers such as you chose for your wedding flowers. There are many fun cake toppers available so don't be afraid to do it yourself if you want to!

• Schedule appointments for dental and physical check ups~Because I was moving out of state when I got married, I had to have a quick dental check up and by the time I scheduled it, I had to go to the dentist while on my honeymoon. So not fun! Live and learn so plan ahead!

• Plan your honeymoon~Make travel, passport, and hotel arrangements. If you plan now, you can enjoy a wonderful honeymoon. It doesn't have to put you in debt! You can plan a very nice getaway for just the two of you, somewhere close and then when you are making a little more money, you can take a big trip somewhere!

• Make arrangements for out of town guests accommodations.
  

~Planning Your Wedding~ PART 1

Six Months Ahead

• Set the date~ Decide the month and the day you want to marry.
• Schedule the place where you want to get married~ The two of you decide where you want the wedding ceremony to be. An elegant indoor wedding or a backyard garden wedding? Just make sure you have a back up plan if it should rain and your special day is planned for outdoors.
• Determine a budget and decide who will pay for what~There are many suggestions for dividing up expenses. You can both decide together how you want to do it or let traditional wedding etiquette be your guide.
• Pick the colors you want your wedding to be~ You can search current bridal magazines & online wedding sites to determine the wedding colors that are in this year or you can let your heart be your guide and pick whatever colors you want to use in your wedding attire, wedding decor, and floral design.
• Start creating your guest list~compose your list according to which events you will be inviting guests to. Make a list for wedding, wedding breakfast or rehearsal dinner, and wedding reception. If you are inviting some of your guests to more than one event, create a system so you invite them to the events you want them to come to. Keep this list! You can use it to send out wedding thank yous and you may want to use some of these addresses for your future Christmas card list.
• Find a Wedding Consultant~this step is optional. Some brides like to strike out on their own. Others don't want the worry or stress of doing everything themselves.

Ideally six months works well for planning a wedding. If by chance, you have less than that to plan, don't panic just adapt this list to fit your time-frame. My husband gave me three weeks to plan and pull off the wedding and we did it! So there is hope if you don't have a full six months!

Simply Beautiful Wedding Favors Tell Guests You Care!

You can get very creative with your wedding favors these days! Take a small simple gift sack the color of your wedding. Fill it with individually wrapped truffles, pillow peppermints, or some other treat of your choice. Fold the top of the sack over at the top and punch a hole in it. Take a contrasting colored mini parasol and stick it through the top of the sack. Finish it off with gorgeous ribbon and there you have a nice thank you gift for guests or would also come in handy to give your guests at a bridal shower.

Wedding Inspiration!

Credits: Rings (2), martha stewart (12), Wedding Cakes (4), Favors (4), Invitations (2)

Just had to share this inspiration board I saw on the Style Me Pretty Blog! Aren't the colors beautiful! The wedding accessories are charming, the cake absolutely delectable, the favors simple and elegant. Isn't the ring in the cupcake a fun idea! Very nicely put together. (Click on the pictures to see the whole thing.) Enjoy!

Choose a Bouquet That Will Last For More Than One Day!

When choosing a wedding bouquet, why not consider buying a faux or a silk flower bouquet. The artificial flowers of today are beautiful and very realistic looking. Here are some great reasons for choosing silk over fresh:

• You'll have a wedding keepsake that will last indefinitely!

• You can purchase your bridal bouquet long before your wedding day. That way you can plan your wedding decor and colors around it. You can also use it for your bridal portrait. It is one less thing to stress about the day of your wedding!

• You don't have to worry about keeping it fresh. It will look perfect all day long for your photos, wedding, and your wedding reception.

At The Wedding Contessa shop at Etsy you will find beautiful wedding bouquets handmade with special care. Blooms are carefully chosen making sure they look realistic and are made of the highest quality. An artist's touch is added by adding creative acessories in the bouquet like bridal tulle with the look of dew drops, scrumptious ribbons, toile, twigs, dried berries, fruit etc... I love custom work so if you have a certain look and colors in mind for your wedding day, contact me at theweddingcontessa@gmail.com and I will create it for you!

Simple, Easy, and Elegant Table Wedding Decor

If you are a "do it yourselfer", you can easily make a beautiful table centerpiece for guest tables, the guest book table, or a table where you display your wedding and bridal photos.

Garden Art

Don't forget to look in your garden for flowers that are in season. Or you can gather a nice variety of flowers from your local florist or garden nursery. Look around your home for a container that will give you the look you want. Add a faux berry wreath, put real cabbage roses, sunflowers, etc...whatever flower you want inside the container to get this simple but elegant look. Create an interesting display by putting the same color containers but non matching on the guest tables and create a garden art look for your wedding.

Antique Look

Got an old tarnished pitcher sitting around? (Go treasure hunting at your local secondhand store.) Get this look simply by gathering greenery from front yard bushes. Add three beautiful rosebuds. Tie a creamy or colored ribbon around the handle and let the ribbon fall carelessly from the handle of the pitcher. Add a wedding photo(s) to sit to the side of it and you have eye candy for your guests!

Glass with Colored Water

Use a drinking glass or other glass container of your choice. Then color the water with food coloring to match the color of your wedding colors. Set your glass container on a white plate. Stick one blooming rose in the water just before guests arrive and put a twig wreath (which you can make before hand from twigs in the yard or purchase) around the flower. Though very simple it makes a nice floral display!

There you have three simple, easy, and elegant floral centerpiece ideas! Happy Creating!

A Royal Way to Announce Your Engagement

Looking for a cute way to announce your recent engagement? How about inviting close friends and relatives to an afternoon or evening a "royal tea party"?

Invitations

Make cute invitations by embellishing a little girl's dress up shoe purchased at the dollar or variety store. Print up the time, date, & place on some regal looking computer paper then print it off. Roll it up and tie a beautiful fancy ribbon around the invitation. Tuck it inside the "glass slipper". Hand deliver your invites by having a little sister, friend, or relative dress up, deliver each glass slipper on a pillow and hand it to the guest.

You can say something like,"Your royal presence is requested at a royal tea party for (the name of the bride to be)"she has found her prince charming and wishes to share her good news with you!
Castle: Your address
Royal Time: The time
No gifts please. Just come and enjoy a royal affair of visiting and refreshments.

Delightful Menu

• Serve gourmet pink and yellow lemonade bottled in pop bottles.

Take the top off the bottles and then stick a straw inside each with a lemon slice on top of the straw and inside the top of the straw stick an opened small parasol. (Glam up the little parasol with some sequins, lace, ribbon, or beads.)

• Serve a variety of light cookies such as sugar cookies in the shape of wedding cakes, lemon squares, mini cupcakes or muffins, and long pretzel sticks dipped in white chocolate with pink sprinkles on it.

Enjoy!

Make your announcement, answer questions about when, where, and who, etc... then everyone can visit and enjoy their refreshments. Have a designated photographer or a couple so you can scrapbook this special event celebrating this time in your life!

Use your Creative Side for Flower Girls and Bridesmaid Dresses

Use your creativity to dress your bridesmaids and your flower girls at your wedding. You know they say "variety is the spice of life"! One new trend is to have them wear the same color but different style of dresses.

If you choose an all white wedding, you can add a colorful sash to bridesmaid or flower girl dresses to match the color you have chosen for your wedding decor.

One beautiful wedding I saw, each bridesmaid was in a different pastel color same design of dress. This theme was carried into the bride's bouquet. It was charming!

Something Old and Something New

Many brides incorporate "Something old, something new
Something borrowed and something blue..."
into their weddings. If a bride does this, it symbolizes the hope for good luck and happiness in her marriage.

Something old might be an item handed down from a grandmother or mother to her daughter such as earrings, a necklace, or handkerchief. Or perhaps something vintage like a veil that would go with your wedding attire. Jackie Bouvier Kennedy wore her Grandmother's heirloom rose point veil draped from a tiara of orange blossoms when she married John F. Kennedy in 1953. It was gorgeous! You can find lots of pictures online well worth seeing its beauty!

Queen Elizabeth II carried a sprig of myrtle in her wedding bouquet cut from a bush growing at Osborne House, Queen Victoria's home on the Isle of Wight. Myrtle is an herb that signifies love and constancy.

(Use your imagination and you can think of a lot of things you could use at your wedding to represent the "something old".)

Something new could be a pair of shoes, a gift of jewelry, your bridal bouquet, whatever you consider as special for your wedding day. Princess Grace of Monoco carried a book to her wedding entitled, Bride's Manual by Rev, J.M. Lelens. It was a gift given her by a friend of her family.

Something borrowed shouldn't be too hard to come up with an idea for this. Lady Diana Spencer lovingly known as Princess Diana wore a borrowed Spencer family heirloom tiara on her royal wedding day. Legend says the tiara was traced back to Marie Antoinette.

Something blue is usually a wedding garter worn by the bride and has something blue on it. Blue is thought to be worn because of its meaning of love, modesty, and fidelity linked to the ancient Romans.

One more interesting tidbit of bridal lore, there is an old quaint custom of a bride putting a sixpence in her shoe to represent wealth and security. Nowadays, a dime or a copper penny is used in place of the sixpence. It is interesting to note that Princess Grace of Monaco wore a copper penny built into her specially designed wedding shoe (the right shoe) for good luck on her wedding day.